How to Use This Book

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, 10 P.M., FRIDAY

Shoreline Amphitheater was rocking. More than 20,000 people had turned out at northern California’s largest music venue to hear Nine Inch Nails, loud and in charge, on what was expected to be their last tour.

Backstage, there was more unusual entertainment.

“Dude, I go into the stall to take care of business, and I look over and see the top of Tim’s head popping above the divider. He was doing f*cking air squats in the men’s room in complete silence.”

Glenn, a videographer and friend, burst out laughing as he reenacted my technique. To be honest, he needed to get his thighs closer to parallel.

“Forty air squats, to be exact,” I offered.

Kevin Rose, founder of Digg, one of the top-500 most popular websites in the world, joined in the laughter and raised a beer to toast the incident. I, on the other hand, was eager to move on to the main event.

In the next 45 minutes, I consumed almost two full-size barbecue chicken pizzas and three handfuls of mixed nuts, for a cumulative total of about 4,400 calories. It was my fourth meal of the day, breakfast having consisted of two glasses of grapefruit juice, a large cup of coffee with cinnamon, two chocolate croissants, and two bear claws.

The more interesting portion of the story started well after Trent Reznor left the stage.

Roughly 72 hours later, I tested my bodyfat percentage with an ultrasound analyzer designed by a physicist out of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Charting the progress on my latest experiment, I’d dropped from 11.9% to 10.2% bodyfat, a 14% reduction of the total fat on my body, in 14 days.

How? Timed doses of garlic, sugar cane, and tea extracts, among other things.

The process wasn’t punishing. It wasn’t hard. Tiny changes were all it took. Tiny changes that, while small in isolation, produced enormous changes when used in combination.

Want to extend the fat-burning half-life of caffeine? Naringenin, a useful little molecule in grapefruit juice, does just the trick.

Need to increase insulin sensitivity before bingeing once per week? Just add some cinnamon to your pastries on Saturday morning, and you can get the job done.

Want to blunt your blood glucose for 60 minutes while you eat a high-carb meal guilt-free? There are a half-dozen options.

But 2% bodyfat in two weeks? How can that be possible if many general practitioners claim that it’s impossible to lose more than two pounds of fat per week? Here’s the sad truth: most of the one-size-fits-all rules, this being one example, haven’t been field-tested for exceptions.

Calories in and calories out? It’s incomplete at best. I’ve lost fat while grossly overfeeding. Cheesecake be praised.

The list goes on and on.

It’s obvious that the rules require some rewriting.

That’s what this book is for.

Diary of a Madman

The spring of 2007 was an exciting time for me.

My first book, after being turned down by 26 out of 27 publishers, had just hit the New York Times bestseller list and seemed headed for #1 on the business list, where it landed several months later. No one was more dumbfounded than me.

One particularly beautiful morning in San Jose, I had my first major media phone interview with Clive Thompson of Wired magazine. During our pre-interview small chat, I apologized if I sounded buzzed. I was. I had just finished a 10-minute workout following a double espresso on an empty stomach. It was a new experiment that would take me to single-digit body-fat with two such sessions per week.

Clive wanted to talk to me about e-mail and websites like Twitter. Before we got started, and as a segue from the workout comment, I joked that the major fears of modern man could be boiled down to two things: too much e-mail and getting fat. Clive laughed and agreed. Then we moved on.

The interview went well, but it was this offhand joke that stuck with me. I retold it to dozens of people over the subsequent month, and the response was always the same: agreement and nodding.

This book, it seemed, had to be written.

The wider world thinks I’m obsessed with time management, but they haven’t seen the other—much more legitimate, much more ridiculous—obsession.

I’ve recorded almost every workout I’ve done since age 18. I’ve had more than 1,000 blood tests1 performed since 2004, sometimes as often as every two weeks, tracking everything from complete lipid panels, insulin, and hemoglobin A1c, to IGF-1 and free testosterone. I’ve had stem cell growth factors imported from Israel to reverse “permanent” injuries, and I’ve flown to rural tea farmers in China to discuss Pu-Erh tea’s effects on fat-loss. All said and done, I’ve spent more than $250,000 on testing and tweaking over the last decade.

Just as some people have avant-garde furniture or artwork to decorate their homes, I have pulse oximeters, ultrasound machines, and medical devices for measuring everything from galvanic skin response to REM sleep.

The kitchen and bathroom look like an ER.

If you think that’s craziness, you’re right. Fortunately, you don’t need to be a guinea pig to benefit from one.

Hundreds of men and women have tested the techniques in The 4-Hour Body (4HB) over the last two years, and I’ve tracked and graphed hundreds of their results (194 people in this book). Many have lost more than 20 pounds of fat in the first month of experimentation, and for the vast majority, it’s the first time they’ve ever been able to do so.

Why do 4HB approaches work where others fail?

Because the changes are either small or simple, and often both. There is zero room for misunderstanding, and visible results compel you to continue. If results are fast and measurable,2 self-discipline isn’t needed.

I can give you every popular diet in four lines. Ready?

– Eat more greens.

– Eat less saturated fat.

– Exercise more and burn more calories.

– Eat more omega-3 fatty acids.

We won’t be covering any of this. Not because it doesn’t work—it does . . . up to a point. But it’s not the type of advice that will make friends greet you with “What the #$%& have you been doing?!”, whether in the dressing room or on the playing field.

That requires an altogether different approach.

The Unintentional Dark Horse

Let’s be clear: I’m neither a doctor nor a PhD. I am a meticulous data cruncher with access to many of the world’s best athletes and scientists.

This puts me in a rather unusual position.

I’m able to pull from disciplines and subcultures that rarely touch one another, and I’m able to test hypotheses using the kind of self-experimentation mainstream practitioners can’t condone (though their help behind the scenes is critical). By challenging basic assumptions, it’s possible to stumble upon simple and unusual solutions to long-standing problems.

Overfat? Try timed protein and pre-meal lemon juice.

Undermuscled? Try ginger and sauerkraut.

Can’t sleep? Try upping your saturated fat or using cold exposure.

This book includes the findings of more than 100 PhDs, NASA scientists, medical doctors, Olympic athletes, professional sports trainers (from the NFL to MLB), world-record holders, Super Bowl rehabilitation specialists, and even former Eastern Bloc coaches. You’ll meet some of the most incredible specimens, including before- and- after transformations, you’ve ever seen.

I don’t have a publish-or-perish academic career to preserve, and this is a good thing. As one MD from a well-known Ivy League university said to me over lunch:

We’re trained for 20 years to be risk-averse. I’d like to do the experimentation, but I’d risk everything I’ve built over two decades of schooling and training by doing so. I’d need an immunity necklace. The university would never tolerate it.

He then added: “You can be the dark horse.”

It’s a strange label, but he was right. Not just because I have no prestige to lose. I’m also a former industry insider.

From 2001 to 2009, I was CEO of a sports nutrition company with distribution in more than a dozen countries, and while we followed the rules, it became clear that many others didn’t. It wasn’t the most profitable option. I have witnessed blatant lies on nutritional fact panels, marketing executives budgeting for FTC fines in anticipation of lawsuits, and much worse from some of the best-known brands in the business.3 I understand how and where consumers are deceived. The darker tricks of the trade in supplements and sports nutrition—clouding results of “clinical trials” and creative labeling as just two examples—are nearly the same as in biotech and Big Pharma.

I will teach you to spot bad science, and therefore bad advice and bad products.4

Late one evening in the fall of 2009, I sat eating cassoulet and duck legs with Dr. Lee Wolfer in the clouds of fog known as San Francisco. The wine was flowing, and I told her of my fantasies to return to a Berkeley or Stanford and pursue a doctorate in the biological sciences. I was briefly a neuroscience major at Princeton University and dreamed of a PhD at the end of my name. Lee is regularly published in peer-reviewed journals and has been trained at some of the finest programs in the world, including the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) (MD), Berkeley (MS), Harvard Medical School (residency), the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago (fellowship), and Spinal Diagnostics in Daly City, California (fellowship).

She just smiled and raised a glass of wine before responding:

“You—Tim Ferriss—can do more outside the system than inside it.”

A Laboratory of One

“Many of these theories have been killed off only when some decisive experiment exposed their incorrectness . . . thus the yeoman work in any science . . . is done by the experimentalist, who must keep the theoreticians honest.”

The last jump from the rich to the general public can take 10–20 years, if it happens at all. It often doesn’t.

I’m not suggesting that you start injecting yourself with odd substances never before tested on humans. I am suggesting, however, that government agencies (the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration) are at least 10 years behind current research, and at least 20 years behind compelling evidence in the field.

More than a decade ago, a close friend named Paul was in a car accident and suffered brain damage that lowered his testosterone production. Even with supplemental testosterone treatments (creams, gels, short-acting injectables) and after visiting scores of top endocrinologists, he still suffered from the symptoms of low testosterone. Everything changed— literally overnight—once he switched to testosterone enanthate, a variation seldom seen in the medical profession in the United States. Who made the suggestion? An advanced bodybuilder who knew his biochemistry. It shouldn’t have made a difference, yet it did.

Do doctors normally take advantage of the 50+ years of experience that professional bodybuilders have testing, even synthesizing, esters of testosterone? No. Most doctors view bodybuilders as cavalier amateurs, and bodybuilders view doctors as too risk-averse to do anything innovative.

This separation of the expertise means both sides suffer suboptimal results.

Handing your medical care over to the biggest man-gorilla in your gym is a bad idea, but it’s important to look for discoveries outside of the usual suspects. Those closest to a problem are often the least capable of seeing it with fresh eyes.

Despite the incredible progress in some areas of medicine in the last 100 years, a 60-year-old in 2009 can expect to live an average of only 6 years longer than a 60-year-old in 1900.

Me? I plan on living to 120 while eating the best rib-eye cuts I can find.

More on that later.

Suffice to say: for uncommon solutions, you have to look in uncommon places.

The Future’s Already Here

In our current world, even if proper trials are funded for obesity studies as just one example, it might take 10–20 years for the results. Are you prepared to wait?

I hope not.

“Kaiser can’t talk to UCSF, who can’t talk to Blue Shield. You are the arbiter of your health information.” Those are the words of a leading surgeon at UCSF, who encouraged me to take my papers with me before hospital records claimed them as their property.

Now the good news: with a little help, it’s never been easier to collect a few data points (at little cost), track them (without training), and make small changes that produce incredible results.

Type 2 diabetics going off of medication 48 hours after starting a dietary intervention? Wheelchair-bound seniors walking again after 14 weeks of training? This is not science fiction. It’s being done today. As William Gibson, who coined the term “cyberspace,” has said:

“The future is already here—it is just unevenly distributed.”

The 80/20 Principle: From Wall Street to the Human Machine

This book is designed to give you the most important 2.5% of the tools you need for body recomposition and increased performance. Some short history can explain this odd 2.5%.

Vilfredo Pareto was a controversial economist-cum-sociologist who lived from 1848 to 1923. His seminal work, Cours d’économie politique, included a then little explored “law” of income distribution that would later bear his name: “Pareto’s Law,” or “the Pareto Distribution.” It is more popularly known as “the 80/20 Principle.”

Pareto demonstrated a grossly uneven but predictable distribution of wealth in society—80 percent of the wealth and income is produced and possessed by 20 percent of the population. He also showed that this 80/20 principle could be found almost everywhere, not just in economics. Eighty percent of Pareto’s garden peas were produced by 20% of the pea-pods he had planted, for example.

In practice, the 80/20 principle is often much more disproportionate.

To be perceived as fluent in conversational Spanish, for example, you need an active vocabulary of approximately 2,500 high-frequency words. This will allow you to comprehend more than 95% of all conversation. To get to 98% comprehension would require at least five years of practice instead of five months. Doing the math, 2,500 words is a mere 2.5% of the estimated 100,000 words in the Spanish language.

This means:

2.5% of the total subject matter provides 95% of the desired results.

This same 2.5% provides just 3% less benefit than putting in 12 times as much effort.

This incredibly valuable 2.5% is the key, the Archimedes lever, for those who want the best results in the least time. The trick is finding that 2.5%.5

This book is not intended as a comprehensive treatise on all things related to the human body. My goal is to share what I have found to be the 2.5% that delivers 95% of the results in rapid body redesign and performance enhancement. If you are already at 5% bodyfat or bench-pressing 400 pounds, you are in the top 1% of humans and now in the world of incremental gains. This book is for the other 99% who can experience near-unbelievable gains in short periods of time.

How to Use This Book—Five Rules

It is important that you follow five rules with this book. Ignore them at your peril.

RULE #1. THINK OF THIS BOOK AS A BUFFET.

Do not read this book from start to finish.

Most people won’t need more than 150 pages to reinvent themselves. Browse the table of contents, pick the chapters that are most relevant, and discard the rest . . . for now. Pick one appearance goal and one performance goal to start.

The only mandatory sections are “Fundamentals” and “Ground Zero.” Here are some popular goals, along with the corresponding chapters to read in the order listed:

RAPID FAT-LOSS

– All chapters in “Fundamentals”

– All chapters in “Ground Zero”

– “The Slow-Carb Diet I and II”

– “Building the Perfect Posterior”

– Total page count: 98

RAPID MUSCLE GAIN

– All chapters in “Fundamentals”

– All chapters in “Ground Zero”

– “From Geek to Freak”

– “Occam’s Protocol I and II”

– Total page count: 97

RAPID STRENGTH GAIN

– All chapters in “Fundamentals”

– All chapters in “Ground Zero”

– “Effortless Superhuman” (pure strength, little mass gain)

– “Pre-Hab: Injury-Proofing the Body”

– Total page count: 92

RAPID SENSE OF TOTAL WELL-BEING

– All chapters in “Fundamentals”

– All chapters in “Ground Zero”

– All chapters in “Improving Sex”

– All chapters in “Perfecting Sleep”

– “Reversing ‘Permanent’ Injuries”

– Total page count: 143

Once you’ve selected the bare minimum to get started, get started.

Then, once you’ve committed to a plan of action, dip back into the book at your leisure and explore. Immediately practical advice is contained in every chapter, so don’t discount something based on the title. Even if you are a meat-eater (as I am), for example, you will benefit from “The Meatless Machine.”

Just don’t read it all at once.

RULE #2. SKIP THE SCIENCE IF IT’S TOO DENSE.

You do not need to be a scientist to read this book.

For the geeks and the curious, however, I’ve included a lot of cool details. These details can often enhance your results but are not required reading. Such sections are boxed and labeled “Geek’s Advantage” with a “GA” symbol.

Even if you’ve been intimidated by science in the past, I encourage you to browse some of these GA sections—at least a few will offer some fun “holy sh*t!” moments and improve results 10% or so.

If you ever feel overwhelmed, though, skip them, as they’re not mandatory for the results you’re after.

RULE #3. PLEASE BE SKEPTICAL.

Don’t assume something is true because I say it is.

As the legendary Timothy Noakes PhD, author or co-author of more than 400 published research papers, is fond of saying: “Fifty percent of what we know is wrong. The problem is that we do not know which 50% it is.” Everything in this book works, but I have surely gotten some of the mechanisms completely wrong. In other words, I believe the how-to is 100% reliable, but some of the why-to will end up on the chopping block as we learn more.

RULE #4. DON’T USE SKEPTICISM AS AN EXCUSE FOR INACTION.

As the good Dr. Noakes also said to me about one Olympic training regimen: “This [approach] could be totally wrong, but it’s a hypothesis worth disproving.”

It’s important to look for hypotheses worth disproving.

Science starts with educated (read: wild-ass) guesses. Then it’s all trial and error. Sometimes you predict correctly from the outset. More often, you make mistakes and stumble across unexpected findings, which lead to new questions. If you want to sit on the sidelines and play full-time skeptic, suspending action until a scientific consensus is reached, that’s your choice. Just realize that science is, alas, often as political as a dinner party with die-hard Democrats and Republicans. Consensus comes late at best.

Don’t use skepticism as a thinly veiled excuse for inaction or remaining in your comfort zone. Be skeptical, but for the right reason: because you’re looking for the most promising option to test in real life.

Be proactively skeptical, not defensively skeptical.

Let me know if you make a cool discovery or prove me wrong. This book will evolve through your feedback and help.

RULE #5. ENJOY IT.

I’ve included a lot of odd experiences and screwups just for simple entertainment value. All fact and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

Much of the content is intended to be read as the diary of a madman. Enjoy it. More than anything, I’d like to impart the joy of exploration and discovery. Remember: this isn’t a homework assignment. Take it at your own pace.

The Billionaire Productivity Secret and the Experimental Lifestyle

“How do you become more productive?”

Richard Branson leaned back and thought for a second. The tropical sounds of his private oasis, Necker Island, murmured in the background. Twenty people sat around him at rapt attention, wondering what a billionaire’s answer would be to one of the big questions—perhaps the biggest question—of business. The group had been assembled by marketing impresario Joe Polish to brainstorm growth options for Richard’s philanthropic Virgin Unite. It was one of his many new ambitious projects. Virgin Group already had more than 300 companies, more than 50,000 employees, and $25 billion per year in revenue. In other words, Branson had personally built an empire larger than the GDP of some developing countries.

Then he broke the silence:

“Work out.”

He was serious and elaborated: working out gave him at least four additional hours of productive time every day.

The cool breeze punctuated his answer like an exclamation point.

4HB is intended to be much more than a book.

I view 4HB as a manifesto, a call to arms for a new mental model of living: the experimental lifestyle. It’s up to you—not your doctor, not the newspaper—to learn what you best respond to. The benefits go far beyond the physical.

If you understand politics well enough to vote for a president, or if you have ever filed taxes, you can learn the few most important scientific rules for redesigning your body. These rules will become your friends, 100% reliable and trusted.

This changes everything.

It is my sincere hope, if you’ve suffered from dissatisfaction with your body, or confusion regarding diet and exercise, that your life will be divided into before-4HB and after-4HB. It can help you do what most people would consider superhuman, whether losing 100 pounds of fat or holding your breath for five minutes. It all works.

There are, of course, some outstanding companies with solid R&D and uncompromising ethics, but they are few and far between. Back to Text

I have absolutely no financial interest in any of the supplements I recommend in this book. If you purchase any supplement from a link in this book, an affiliate commission is sent directly to the nonprofit DonorsChoose.org, which helps public schools in the United States. Back to Text

Philosopher Nassim N. Taleb noted an important difference between language and biology that I’d like to underscore: the former is largely known and the latter is largely unknown. Thus, our 2.5% is not 2.5% of a perfect finite body of knowledge, but the most empirically valuable 2.5% of what we know now. Back to Text

Related and Recommended

The Tim Ferriss Showis one of the most popular podcasts in the world with over 500 million downloads. It has been selected for "Best of Apple Podcasts" three times, it is often the #1 interview podcast across all of Apple Podcasts, and it's been ranked #1 out of 400,000+ podcasts on many occasions. To listen to any of the past episodes for free, check out this page.

Comment Rules: Remember what Fonzie was like? Cool. That’s how we’re gonna
be — cool. Critical is fine, but if you’re rude, we’ll delete your stuff. Please do not put your URL in the comment text and please use your PERSONAL name or initials and not your business name, as the latter comes off like spam. Have fun and thanks for adding to the conversation! (Thanks to Brian Oberkirch for the inspiration.)

A slight but very effective variation to the “Improved – Pressure Missionary” position in the “Improving Sex” section of the book is as follows:

Rather than simply positioning the male body more forward by the guy lifting his knees off the bed try this:

Assume the conventional missionary position but the male places his legs on the outside (yes, outside) of his woman’s legs, and hooks his feet on the instep of his woman’s feet. So, it’s instep to instep as far as the couple’s feet are concerned, and this is an important part of this position because its adds a ton of leverage to the stages below.

Next, the dude moves his body up as far as is comfortable for his woman and himself. This places his penis deep in her vagina, and dramatically increases pubic contact for both people. The increased pubic contact ensures that the woman’s clitoris is in direct contact with her man’s pubic area.

The next step ensures full exposure of the woman’s clitoris to the next stage. The man or woman must reach down and spread the labia major and labia minor to fully expose the woman’s clitoral glans. This can be somewhat tricky because the man must immediately, but gently, push his pubic area against his woman’s clitoris.

Then, it’s rhythmic, but gentle rocking. Either up and down (vertical) or side to side (horizontal), or a combination of both. The most important point here is consistent pressure on the woman’s clitoral glans.

Guys, be very careful about getting too carried away as this position really heightens male sensitivity and your partner will also immediately respond in a very positive way. If you apply too much pressure at the pubic areas it will hurt your woman – no fun and game ended! So be very gentle even though you (and your partner) may feel like going for it full bore.

Just keep the steady rhythmic (gentle) pace going and all good things will happen very soon.

Many woman have said that having sex in this position was the first time they have experienced a vaginal orgasm. I don’t know if this is true but it is one of the best positions I’ve experienced for true penis to vagina sexual satisfaction.

Tim, I got the book early (thanks btw, I’ve shown it to everybody I’ve met online and off and am loving their reactions!). However, I’ve noticed the links for FourHourBody.com don’t work (the fat loss pictures and fat replica were what I tried). I figured it was because the book hasn’t officially launched and everything is still in crunch time, but I thought you should know just in case 🙂

in europe I am a 50 + recreational cyclist with 10kgs of love handles to release, what sections of the book with respect to strength training for cyclists who dream of becoming flyweight mountain climbing gods would be the most appropriate.

Loved the book, a must read. Howeve, the bonus material links are still not there or I havent been able to find them. Please indicate which is it. I search for it throughout the web every few days since the launch with no luck. Please tell how i can access this bonus information.

I heard about your book at around 6pm, downloaded it, it’s now 4am and I finished the sex chapter .. And appendix. I want to lose body fat AND gain mussle mass … Am I delirious ? Are those incompatible ? Is milk good or bad ? I’ve thrown away the pint I normally drink each night and then refilled it 3 times. Next to me is a super hot blond, so after reading the sex supplements I raided her vitamin draw and found selenium, zinc, vitamin d3, vitamin a and c …. So , I repoured the milk and downed the whole ungodly cocktail … Which .. By volume, was an entire weeks meals. I’m 52, I’d better wake up later with the testosterone of a bull shark … Or it’s back to the old standby’s : overdose on cilias and adderall …. An interesting book .. I have no idea who your audience is .. I work out and do cross fit … IS MILK GOOD OR BAD .. WHATS BETTER … SELENIUM OR CIALIS ? (will a balanced 12lb of vitamins guarantee a 4 hour erection?)

Ordered my copy a few weeks ago on Amazon! Really looking forward to it after reading the table of contents… Also, thanks for letting us know that we don’t have to read the whole book and recommending the chapters to focus on!

im a huge fan of yours and have been for years. we actually have a couple of mutual friends which is pretty cool, haha. anyway, im super stoked about your book. i know i wont be disappointed…cant wait!

Understanding leverage and mat time is probably 80% of what will allow me to improve fastest in BJJ, but having that explosiveness is what I think will move me from being a semi-slow cow to somewhere close to Marcelo Garcia speed (that’s my dreamlining 🙂 ).

I’m sure when your book launches you’ll have another Q&A. I look forward to asking you what you feel is the quickest way to improve in jiu jitsu. Now if only I could get access to your Evernote notebook on the subject…..

Unfair American advantage, you lot get everything quicker. I just ordered my copy of 4HB on Amazon UK and I have to wait until February 2011. I want it now damn it. If its half as good as your last book then I am in for a treat. Keep up the Great work.

Your first book changed my life. Because of your book I moved to Silicon Mountain View, California from Australia 3 months ago and just gained the first major step to my 4hww freedom – an unconditional remote work agreement – last Friday! They’ve even agreed to let me go back and work from Australia and abroad! I’ve been having a ball here in Mountain View and now intend to go exploring & roadtripping around the rest of the USA before a mini-retirement to Somewhere in South America

I’ve had 4HB on pre-order for ages now.

You’re first book has had transformed my life. I’m hoping this one can transform my body.

Congratulations, Tom! Mountain View is great — I lived there for 4 years. Be sure to try the taqueria across the street from the old PayPal building. Coming from the railroad tracks, just turn right after the aquarium store (if it’s still there).

I think the taqueria is Los Charros? It is me and my friend Steve’s favorite. He was down there for a conference last weekend and tormented me with a burrito picture. Damn… I could go for one of those burritos and a quart-sized horchata right now!

I know i’m getting a copy from your assistant, but I ordered one today that i’ll give away. I gave away a ton of 4hww to family and friends…I’m sure this will be no different based on the above.

I hope you have some way to measure the book sale response with the trailer as a factor…That trailer was just OMFG good. (Yeah I commented on youtube…) How can one not be fired up for the book after it? Just masterful.

Some pre-launch-pre-appreciation for post launch nuclear reactions from “the man”:

Hey…I said this before…The backlash should be legendary for the book. I know you’re prepared for it, but I sincerely hope it proves worth it to you. I know its worth it to me and thousands like me…

Whatever you do…don’t stop. Don’t let the next level wwf/ninja style hating that’ll be going on discourage you. You’re going to be changing the conversation again…You’re going to be threatening the “livelihoods” of people (some with a great deal of power) whose job depends on you being wrong…so your being right won’t even be close to enough for individuals and institutions like them. F’em…Doesn’t matter…keep on doing it!

And after whatever sabbatical/extended vacation/gtfo the country or planet you do…think about writing a book focused just on marketing. You’re running circles around the best marketers out there right now. Trust me, i’ve been looking at EVERYTHING in the most OCD ways imaginable and you’re crushing guys who get paid ALOT of money for their marketing advice/products/coaching/etc. I also think you’ve put into play just about everything Seth Godin talks about in terms of making a difference and developing a relationship with your customers. I’ll preorder 20 copies now if it’ll get you to write it faster! 🙂

Thanks so much for this comment, Paul. I’ve been mentally preparing myself for 3 years now, but you’re so right: the next level of haters is coming soon. I’ll be ready, or as ready as I can be. Then I’ll take a nice little mini-retirement.

Thank you also for the kind words on marketing. Once the launch wraps up, I’ll be doing a complete “Analysis of a Launch” and will cover what worked and what didn’t.

Out of curiosity, how many WOMEN actually said that want a 15 minute orgasm? Seems to me something that your male readers would be more interested in (attempting to provide, that is..) than your female ones.

What are your thoughts on sugar intake and fat loss? I stopped eating sugar (table, HFCS, etc.) and went from 212 to 195 in a month or so without any cardio. I started eating sugar again (as an experiment) and gained 5 pounds in less than a week.

Can’t wait for my amazon order to arrive. Is the slow carb diet chapter the same as what you’ve posted on this blog? Also, what sections would you recommend for someone who rock climbs and boulders? Thanks!!

I can hardly wait, Tim! I’ve got it on pre-order and look forward to putting up a review, as well as trying some of the experiments.

Where the “nuclear/legendary” backlash is concerned, I don’t think it’ll be that bad. Just the odd sniper with their own (financial) fitness turf to defend, and the occasional person who doesn’t get that YMMV in many physical matters. Par for the course with fitness/health material.

Tim – Am based in India and when trying to place the order on AppSumo it only says international shipments will be charged extra, no detail on how much or how long it will take to deliver. Would really help if they included that detail.

Also, I’ve already placed an order for two books from amazon with priority international shipping to the UK (I should receive it between the 16-20th Dec). I’m keen to go for the APPSUMO deal but there is no indication of how long it would take for the book to arrive – I definitely want it before xmas.

In my twenties I was very dedicated to staying in shape. Unfortunately, through a series of events, I have many aches and pains and just can’t seem to do much at the gym without causing more pain and frustration than satisfaction. I’m extremely excited about the book and particularly the reversing permanent injuries.

Keep writing!

p.s. I’ve been thinking too long about what my muse will be and may have found it recently! Just doing some research before jumping in.

I recently pre-ordered 2 of your books as I was excited to get your signed copies in the mail for christmas. However, in between having signed up and when Barnes and Nobles was going to charge me, I had my credit card stolen and had to change it.

I kept calling their offices but never seemed to get through. However, they canceled my order and I was wondering if I reorder if I could still get the copies signed?

It’s on my wishlist. I like your style of unconventional, yet tested, solutions. Like Machiavelli, who wrote an advice book just like everybody else in his position, but with a different goal, your work addresses a common question with a unique approach.

I’m excited for it because I’ve been through a slightly drastic up and down in the last year, going out of shape because I became busy, then losing it when I ended up starving and playing a club sport. But I”m looking forward to reading this and learning how to provide for the needs of my body.

I love your first book and have pre ordered 2 copies of this one! Can’t wait!

I run the biggest CrossFit Gym in Sweden, CrossFit Nordic. 4HWW have helped me improve on the business end of it. This looks great for the actual training, and private sessions. Bring the experimentation on!

Creds for your ad-campaign. The CrossFit Community has shared your video a lot lately. And fun that you included Brian MacKenzie in this book!

Thank you for the comment and good question. It’s very appropriate for women, and at least 50% of the case studies are women, including mothers of 2+ kids. The book also includes chapters specifically for female problem areas.

This just after: selling all my stuff, packing two bags and il gato, and moving to Italy on a wing and a prayer…ME: performing artist in my 50’s; very flexible (yoga yoga yoga) but need to kick up the cardio/strength factors..and what about women’s skin?

also Tim consider reading The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Sogyal Rinpoche if you haven’t already. buddhism is so you

I’m done reading it cover to cover and I have to say some interesting content- and much more of it than I thought there would be as well! A lot of this will be completely new to the general public. Thanks for giving away yet more of our professional secrets!

I know you might be a hesitant to answer this as you are not a doctor, but I’d like to get your opinion if I can.

I just got diagnosed with inguinal herni.

I’ll have surgery soon. The assumption is after 1 month I’ll be back to a complete normal health (I won’t be barred from weightlifting etc.)

Should I then start with the strength gain section in your book, or rapid muscle gain section?

The hernia thing happened I’m infront of the computer too much and have an overall week core. I’m at 16% body fat, and I’m weeker in abs, lower back, legs, whereas more powerful in upper body. I’ve done isolated workouts so far, so when faced with an unusual strain (such as sudden weight shift when lifting boxes), I’m prone to injury.

Once you have medical clearance to lift, I HIGHLY suggest you start with “Pre-Hab: Injury-Proofing the Body.” Even just 4 weeks of that will be incredibly helpful, and it will still get you in better shape.

I don’t get into it specifically in the book, but it depends on if it’s superficial fat or actual gynecomastia. If the latter is advanced, usually from androgen use, then surgical repair is sometimes the only option. If not advanced and still the latter, an MD can sometimes prescribe an anti-estrogen or anti-aromatase to help.

I apologize in advance if this was already covered in a previous comment, but I didn’t have time to read ’em all.

First off, I’m excited. ToC looks -stellar-. And yes, I’ve already pre-ordered, so this is just to pump me up.

One thing that jumped out at me though was the sections on ‘ultraendurance’ and ‘meatless’ diets.

I noticed you had a post not too long ago about the Primal/Paleo diet, but that was focused mostly on the diet side.

I don’t know if you prescribe to the full notion of the Primal Blueprint, but it strongly advocates that the human body is NOT designed for endurance sport, but rather high intensity activity over short periods of time (sprinting, etc).

It also argues that we are best designed to process meats, fruits, and veggies predominantly.

So I’m very curious to see how these chapters correlate with the Primal Blueprint, as I’ve been on it for about 8 months now, and look and feel the best I ever have.

Regarding #2. It’s refreshing to hear an author humbly submit that 50% of what what we read may be wrong, and some may “end up on the chopping block” when more evidence presents itself. In contrast, most authors suggest they are the definitive experts, which any reasonable man knows is at least 50% bull sh*t.

I hadn’t planned on getting your book – assuming it would be just like all the others. Your candor and honesty makes you unlike all the others, which compels me to get your book.

Awesome read! Thanks. I already pre-ordered the kindle edition but, this was a great appetizer. If you still want that PhD you can get it for $500 at Belford University. It is an accredited online college that gives doctorates for real life experience. It’s legit. This is not an advertisement. I have no affiliation with it. I dont even know off hand the link. But, if you want a PhD without the unnecessary schooling, this is the best solution that I have found. What do you think, Timothy Ferriss PhD?

I bought a kindle just to buy this book the instant it comes out and not have to wait for it to get to Chile. After i had complete spinal fusion surgery at 15, I’ve been jogging 6 days a week for over 6 years. As much as i love the rush and energy and clarity of it (i’d rather die than go back to doing nothing), im completely psyched to see what sort of 80/20 shenanigans i can squeeze out of my exercise sessions to burn away the ever-resilient middle-area fat. Right after I memorize the 15 minute orgasm chapter that is.

Im skeptical of about 50% of the stuff, loved the “it’s worth disproving” quote!

I’m really looking forward to checking out Occam’s Protocol. I’ve been trying to figure out the same thing recently – if I had to minimize my exercising as much as possible while still getting the maximum benefits of muscle building and metabolism elevation, how would I do it?

With so much bodybuilder “broscience” that has trickled down to average Joes, it’s hard to convince people that they shouldn’t be spending 75% of their time doing 100 variations of bench presses, bicep curls, and crunches.

Here’s my current thinking. 2-3x per week:

-Push ups

-Air squats

-Pull ups

-Deadlifts

-Cleans

-Overhead Presses

(or sub olympic lifts for the last 3)

(do all exercises 5x fatigue)

And for good measure, one run through the Tabata protocol every week. (Sprints, or burpees).

I’m excited to see what your take on minimalist exercise in the book is, Tim!

Ordered the package, can’t wait! Love the way you think and look at things.

I’ve been hacking my own body with raw vegan foods, superfoods, (a lot of David Wolfe stuff), BJJ and muay thai, while controlling diabetes. Just wondering, being vegan, if it’s going to clash? any suggestions?

It all looks very interesting, but I’m wondering how all that applies to women. I have the feeling that the market you are targetting for this book is mainly men. The language seems directed at them and obviously you were the guinea pig for the experiments, so I guess what we see will be results of experiments in a man’s body. It would be very interesting to know what happens when the subject matter is a woman. Still, I want to give it a shot and find out what happens to my body. Very interested in the 15-Minute Female Orgasm session as well, even though 15 minutes seems a bit too much (I’m just imagining the scene – 15 whole minutes lying on a bed moaning with pleasure… 15 minutes!!!! sounds impossible, but worth a try!) Congratulations Tim, you are a genius and I envy the women you tried this experiment on !!

what have you all been doing? I may be an uptight Brit. but women having 15 minute orgasms of course it’s possible try 1 hour! it truly is most liberating. 15 minutes is nothing maybe not such up tight Brit after all 😉

It all looks very interesting, but I’m wondering how all that applies to women. I have the feeling that the market you are targetting for this book is mainly men. The language seems directed at them and obviously you were the guinea pig for the experiments, so I guess what we see will be results of experiments in a man’s body. It would be very interesting to know what happens when the subject matter is a woman. Still, I want to give it a shot and find out what happens to my body. Very interested in the 15-Minute Female Orgasm session as well, even though 15 minutes seems a bit too much (I’m just imagining the scene – 15 whole minutes lying on a bed moaning with pleasure… 15 minutes!!!! sounds impossible, but worth a try!) Congratulations Tim, you are a genius and I envy the women you tried this experiment on !!

Tim, the book looks very interesting. As a 36 year old woman struggling to get pregnant, do you think there are any parts of this book that may pertain to infertility other than the increasing sperm count chapter?

I asked this on the YouTube comment as well (the sample chapter was available already when you made the site public 🙂 )

the trailer doesn’t have anything about living for 120+ years. I saw that you have a chapter on it.. I just feel like it deserves more space/mention than what you allocated to.. are you sharing more about it?

Also I want to gain weight but I was always afraid that by eating a lot of proteins I use my body more and I die younger.. do you have some research that proves that this is false? (I’ll read your book anyways, and do what you suggest 🙂 )

I don’t squat (avoiding gorilla butt), but my last deadlift workout was 460 x 2 and then rack pulls with 630 x 2-3 reps. I have video to show soon. No wraps and double overhand (not hook) grip. I’m no Louis Simmons, but I have access to his guys 🙂

Very excited about the book and interested on what you have planned for future books(?) The 4-Hour Mind maybe? I am interested on your thoughts regarding techniques to increase ones memory, thinking skills, accelerated learning, neurofeebback, brain entrainment, software, etc. There seems to be as much snake oil/misinformation out there regarding “brain improvement” as there is when it comes to physical fitness. I look forward to your thoughts.

Hi Tim! Can’t wait to pick this book up! You are amazing and I am so proud of you and your work. 🙂 It is still a bit odd for me to think my middle school friend is such a superstar.. I knew you would be, though, and I am SO pysched for you that you are living the life you envisioned! Keep up the amazing work Tim. Melissa

Tim…how is it possible to eat more than your quota of 3000 kcals a day, do no exercise (or physically strenuous activity) and keep losing weight? Thats just scientifically impossible unless you are a burn victim/incredibly heavy (like 300 lb +) or a guy with a metabolic disorder.

Can you prove this? I.e. Can you undergo a trial monitored by someone like James Randi or some well known skeptic and prove that you can lose weight by eating those amounts of food and not exercising?

If you do that, we skeptics will all believe you, get all our friends to buy this book and even eat our own words.

Whoops, emailed Amy about the broken links that I discovered in the book yesterday; didn’t see that you posted a response about it already. ~70 pages in and loving it, trying to get a BodPod bodycomp scheduled for Thursday (wasn’t able to find a Dexa that was close enough).

Man I hear you about conservative science. I left academia immediately after getting my PhD in physics since I didn’t want to spend my time writing grants and limiting my research to nitnoids within the current paradigms. How do you get grant money to fund ideas that are 99% likely to be wrong, but if right are very very cool…